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Ever considered a career in branding or Googled “branding” or “brand specialist” for any reason? Then you’re not alone. Like you, many have sought more information on branding or brand experts.

This could be because:

you’re looking to hire one, or

you’re looking to become one

Perhaps while majority were concerned with the best buzzer beaters and clutch shots from March Madness, you were looking out for the brands behind the event. That’s one of the signs you’re probably cut out for branding.

In this post we shall look at other telltale signs and skills you possess that suggest that a career in branding just might be right for you.

Whether you’re trying to decide between STEM and the Arts or looking to change careers, this article will point you in the right direction, but first things first

What is a Brand?

Mercedes Benz, Coca Cola, Disney, name them; these are some popular brand names, but what really is a brand?

According to American Marketing Association Dictionary,

“a brand is a name, term, design, symbol, or other feature that distinguishes an organization or product from its rivals in the eyes of the customer.”

And

What is Branding?

Branding can be said to be differentiation, everything that makes a brand different from the competition and more appealing to customers.

Wheeler. H, in his book the Miracle of Man, suggests that branding was a livestock practice by ancient Egyptians as far back as 2,700BC. They branded cattle for identity and theft prevention.

The Importance of Proper Branding

Thieves and rustlers attacked cattle owners, those who refused to brand their cattle were the biggest losers. Hence, branding became and still remains key to business survival in the face of heightening competition.

Brands now have approximately 8s to grab customer attention and make a good first impression, failing which customers move to the next option just a mouse click away.

Following are

Some Benefits of Good Branding

brand survival

brand awareness

brand recognition

brand acceptance

better perception

more business

customer loyalty

happy staff

staff loyalty, etc

These and many more are reasons why brands spend heavily on advertising, marketing and branding in order to grab the most of their respective market shares.

In a recent study, respondents from different industries were asked to indicate what percentage of their overall budget went to marketing. Participants from Consumer Packaged Goods industry recorded an average of 24%.

Others are:

Consumer Services ——————————————– 15%

Tech/Software/Biotech —————————————– 15%

Communications/Media —————————————- 13%

Mining/Construction ———————————————-13%

Service Consulting ———————————————–12%

Education ———————————————————–11%

Healthcare/Pharmaceuticals ———————————–10%

Retail/Wholesale ————————————————–10%

Banking/Finance/Insurance ———————————– 8%

Transportation —————————————————– 8%

Manufacturing —————————————————– 8%

Energy ————————————————————— 4%

From the list above, we observe that the average marketing spend per industry is 11.6%.

Below is another list from same study showing how companies under B2B Product category spend their marketing budget.

Direct expenses of marketing —————————- 66%

Social media ————————————————- 50%

Marketing employees ————————————– 51%

Marketing research —————————————– 45%

Marketing training ——————————————- 45%

Marketing analytics —————————————– 48%

Other overhead ———————————————- 45%

When we consider the entire study, we see that companies spend an average of 45.5% of marketing budget on marketing employees.

If you know how to generate company name ideas with or without business name generators, then branding as a career may be a perfect fit.

4. Creating Taglines

Some brands are popular not because of their cool business names or logos, but because of their memorable and apt taglines.

Ford Motors tagline is “Go further”

If you’re skilled at creating such amazing taglines, straplines, slogans, tags or brand lines, you can go further with it as an advertising agency just might need your services.

5. Persuasive Copywriting

A well designed logo or flier will fare badly if infested with poor body copy. Persuasive copywriting combined with engaging graphics is the crux of effective advertising.

If you’re intrigued by the likes of David Ogilvy and Co, and have been able to convince friends and strangers to buy anything then a branding or advertising related career might suit you.

Conclusion

Whatever you’re skilled at, whether creative imagination like Walt Disney, logos and graphics design, generating cool business name ideas, writing catchy taglines or very persuasive copy; you can choose to work for a company, agency or self as a freelancer.

These skills are valuable, if you possess them perhaps you should be considering a career in branding.

In a world where Instagram rules, your photography skills have the ability to make or break your brand, whether it’s your personal image or your corporate reputation. Whether you’re looking to bring new life to your private Instagram or increase brand awareness for a company, hashtags and follow-bots aren’t going to cut it. To get authentic traction on social media, remember this: content is king. When it comes to Instagram, that means considered, quality photography will make all the difference.

1. Keep Your Smartphone In Your Pocket

These days, we like to think we can do anything with a smartphone. Unfortunately, all but the highest-end cameras can come close to the quality of a proper DSLR or mirrorless camera. So our first recommendation is to rest your smartphone and invest in the real thing. The pixel density and light sensitivity of a ‘real’ camera will unlock so much more from your shots. Believe us, your followers will really tell the difference.

To deal with a variety of shooting scenarios, you’ll want a decent DSLR and a range of lenses. The capacity to switch between a prime lens and a wide angle will give you far more control over every shot.

The downside? Cost. But hold up. Thanks to the fast-growing sharing economy, there are a number of ways to get around the price tag. In the past, camera hire meant paying a premium and travelling to the other side of the city within working hours to collect it. With platforms like Fat Lama, however, it’s now easy and safe to borrow industry-standard gear from nearby photographers. Peer-to-peer camera rental has grown especially quickly in cities like London and New York, but the platform’s available throughout the US, so it’s worth seeing what’s listed in your area.

2. Learn The Ropes

If you start using specialist equipment, you’ll need to learn how to get the most out of it. It’s worth saying, you’ll need to know about photographic composition if you want your photography to pop off the page. Besides this, it’s worth doing your reading on subjects like ISO, aperture and shutter speed. These are all vital if you want control over the depth, colour and composition of your images. Shooting inside will warrant sourcing a decent flash – the ones that come with most beginner DSLRs will tend to wash out photos.

There are a number of great blogs offering great advice, for beginners, intermediates and experts alike. PetaPixel’s a great place to start.

3. Beware Of The Photoshop Mentality

Technology has revolutionised the photography world. But that doesn’t mean it can’t hinder your aesthetic, too. In 2018, it’s become all too familiar to hear, “You can fix that in photoshop, right?” Of course, you probably can fix the problem in photoshop later, but that’s not to say it’s the most efficient use of your time, nor that it will generate the best results.

There’s something addictive about the godlike power of altering your captured image; changing the scene as it appeared to you originally. But equally, it can allow photographers to pay less care to the shooting process. Even the greatest colour work in post-production won’t save an unimaginative image, so think and shoot in the present.

So, there you have it. Three simple considerations which could totally turn your photography game on its head. It’s really worth investing the time to learn how to use proper photography gear. If you’re intimidated by the unknowns of the mirrorless world, then fear not. Once you’re past the initial hurdle, we promise you’ll love the world that opens up for you.

When you cut or edit a video, you should always pause and ask yourself one simple question: “Why?” Every cut, edit, and alteration that you make to your video should serve a purpose – not the least of which being to make your video ‘flow’ better from one scene or view to the next.

At first, the intricacies involved in cutting and editing videos to make them flow better can seem difficult, which is why it is best to start with the basics. In particular, there are 5 ways to cut and edit videos that can dramatically improve their flow, and you should know them all:

Jump cut

One of the most popular types of cuts is the ‘jump cut’, which basically involves moving forward in time by cutting the video so that the subject appears to jump from one position to the next. It is commonly used to show the passage of time, get rid of lulls and pauses, and speed up events in a video.

The problem with the jump cut is the fact that it can be jarring and if used tactlessly could actually interrupt the flow of a video rather than helping it. That is why it is best to use jump cuts strategically, and as a tool to set the pace of the video.

Cut on action

Basically this type of cut involves cutting from one shot mid-action to another shot that has the same action. In doing so it can help to smoothly transition the perspective from one camera to another, without breaking up the flow of the video.

In action sequences, this type of cut is often used to make the sequence wider and tenser. It can also be used in other sequences, however, as it means you don’t have to wait for a pause to shift perspectives.

L cut and J cut

Both the L cut and J cut are similar to one another, and are essentially opposites. With the L cut you’ll cut the video to the next scene, while still playing audio from the previous scene. On the other hand with the J cut you’ll start playing audio from the next scene, before cutting to it later.

Generally the L cut can be used to help to provide context to the dialogue or other audio elements while not interrupting the flow in the way a cutaway would. Similarly, the J cut can do the same but in reverse.

Balancing cuts with flow

The cuts highlighted above are all important, but as you can see what is all the more important is using them in the right circumstances to trim out pauses, change perspectives, provide context, and so on. That is why a key part of editing a video to flow better is to balance it out – so the cuts don’t affect the flow.

While it is subjective, you should try to use the minimum number of cuts possible that will allow you to still end up with a tightly cut video.

Adding transitions carefully

Another aspect to keep in mind are the transitions that are used in your video. While transitions can make a video look more visually interesting, if they are too long or jarring they will interrupt the flow. As such, transitions should be added carefully and only in specific places where they will accentuate the video without affecting the flow negatively.

If you want to start to try to cut and edit your video using the methods listed above to make it flow better, you should give Movavi Video Editor a try. It is an easy to use video editor that will let you quickly split your video into segments, merge them together in the sequence that you want, and ensure that they flow perfectly.

With the features in Movavi Video Editor, you can improve your video in other ways too, and add effects and filters, blur video, enhance its quality, add transitions, insert text, and much more. Just remember before you edit your video in any of these ways to ask yourself why you’re doing so and how it will help to improve your video.